ARSE against AKB

before the game







reading Wenger's post match comments

After Sunday’s debacle against Man Utd Arsenal are out of 3 competitions by the end of January. This leaves the Champions League. Should we progress and come up against Manchester United or Chelsea history shows we will be knocked out (as we were against the other English Club traditionally in the Champions League Liverpool)
Another transfer window closes and Wenger chooses not to add to the squad. The only conceivable rationale for not doing so is that he believes the current squad are good enough.

Well let’s look at that belief; Arsenal have not won a trophy since 2005. Arsenal have been destroyed at home by Manchester United and Chelsea twice in two seasons. This squad has achieved nothing thus far other than being top of the fair play league.

There are a number of alarming flaws in Wenger’s thinking, in squad selection team choices and tactics all of which point towards a worrying trend; that of trying every which way to make something work that clearly doesn’t.

Arsenal’s first choice goalkeeper is not an international unlike his predecessors, yet when Given, Friedel and a number of other goalkeepers were available Wenger chose not to buy. Wenger is quoted as saying that he didn’t try to buy Alonso or Barry as ‘it would have killed Diaby and Denilson’ this is flawed thinking. On Sunday against one of the poorer Man Utd sides of recent years Wenger played a defensive formation. Wenger employed the long ball to hit a target man in Arshavin who is five foot and inches. Wenger terminated the Arsenal careers of Pires and Gilberto, among others, on the basis of his age policy, yet bought Silvestre, thus making a mockery of that policy. Wenger froze out Senderos yet kept Silvestre. Wenger allowed Diarra, Gilberto and Flamini to go at the same time, yet retains sub standard players on substantial contracts. Wenger made a good profit on Adebayor and Toure yet failed to reinvest in the team. One of the stated purposes of moving to the Emirates was being able to compete on and off the pitch, yet there has been no investment in the kind of quality on the pitch that our supposed competitors have been making.

The danger of the path Arsene is taking us down is that those players of genuine quality will make the logical choice of leaving the club. Fabregas, and Arshavin could very well be on their way, and could you blame them. Walcott is treading water under Wenger, as he is not being given opportunities to play his natural game, if at all. This is just one example of Wenger’s obsession of fitting square pegs into round holes; a sure fire way to alienate players.

The Carling Cup is not challenged for; this is Wenger’s policy. The FA cup is not challenged for; this is obvious by the team selection against Stoke.
This leaves The Champions League and Premiership. Therefore season ticket holders should get a reduction on games that take place in half of the tournaments we enter.AKBs(Arsene Knows Best)seem to blindly ignore some of the obvious deficiencies that blight Wenger's management of The Club, and I can feel the tide turning towards the ARSEs (Arsene Really should Exit)empty seats, are an example of passive/aggresive demonstration, as are full pubs in N1 during the game.

Those AKBs that proliferate on the Web will have none of this yet all I am presenting are facts. And in the words of Dennis Hopper in True Romance “If those are facts, am I lying?”

He who shall remain nameless

I am surprised at how venomous the ‘Arsene Knows’ camp can be towards any criticism. When an Arsenal supporter is concerned about the present and the future of the club there has to be a general correlation to this concern with the manager and his running of the team and squad.

To be critical of Arsene is not a case of so called plastic fans jumping upon some sort of bandwagon of negativity, it’s a viewpoint based on performance, selection and decision making.

Money and financial handling seem to be the main motivating forces at the Club, not winning trophies.

Let’s get one thing straight; the money that is not spent is our money, the money that pays players who are clearly not of the right quality is our money. The wages of a Manager who is failing to manage his resources effectively is our money. The money that floods into the club on a match day generated by purchases of Arsenal products and catering is our money.

When Arsenal concede the FA cup that was a realistic target given that Manchester United and Liverpool were knocked out earlier, it is not value for money or value for fans.

Some of the AKs call it heresy to question the supposed Genius of Wenger. Since when has being an Arsenal supporter meant that you can’t have an opinion?

I hear players being criticised week in week out. Who decided that you are only allowed to criticise players not the person who signs and plays them?

Almunia is not good enough yet Wenger made him first choice. Silvestre is not good enough but Wenger broke his self imposed age policy to bring him to the club. Denilson is not good enough but Wenger chose to lose Gilbeto, Diarra and Flamini as he has belief in his squad.

If Arsenal go another season without a trophy Wenger will still be immune from fair criticism because the books will balance. He will be immune from criticism for what he achieved in the past. But it is that glorious past that we are judging him by; the very standards he set.

To be critical of Wenger is not the act of a traitor as it is a criticism borne out of frustration and a cold hard look at facts. It’s not because we hate Arsene it’s because we love Arsenal.

Wenger's Squad Poverty

That Wenger feels that he needed to rest players/rotate squad in the FA Cup defeat to Stoke City is in itself not too much of a problem. However when the expectations are that Arsenal go out to win every Tournament and every Trophy it is a fool hardy approach.
Foolish, as the quality of the squad is not good enough to pursue this policy.
The last Trophy Arsenal won was the FA Cup and we were able to utilise this squad in pursuit of glory on all fronts;


1 LEHMANN, Jens GK 4 VIEIRA, Patrick M
13 TAYLOR, Stuart GK 7 PIRES, Robert M
24 ALMUNIA, Manuel GK 8 LJUNGBERG, Fredrik M
3 COLE, Ashley D 12 LAUREN, Etame M
18 CYGAN, Pascal D 17 EDU, Caesar M
20 SENDEROS, Phillipe D 19 GILBERTO SILVA M
22 GLICHY, Gael D 21 PENNANT, Jermaine M
23 CAMPBELL, Sol D 28 TOURE, Kolo M
32 SVL URD, Sebastien D 56 SMITH, Ryan M
45 HOYTE, Justin D 57 FABREGAS, Cesc M
51 SIMEK, Frankie D 9 REYES, Antonio M
10 BERGKAMP, Dennis F 11 VAN PERSIE, Robin F
14 HENRY, Thierry F 30 ALIADIERE, Jeremie F
54 OWUSU-ABEYLE, Quincy F

This is the core problem with Wenger's obsession. He has replaced a quality squad capable of winning trophies and sustaining a challenge in the hunt for honours, with an inferior selection. If it were purely down to commerce or availability it would be understandable (even if unacceptable) but it isn't; it's dogma on his part.

If you look at this squad and take out the equivalent members through injury or International obligations it still looks better than what we currently have under the same circumstances.

It's easy to talk about how Stoke play anti-football and how Wenger has belief but the reality is that his belief is not well placed and if Arsenal can't knock out a team of Stokes ponderousness there have to be real concerns.

Nor will I go into our deficiencies in a number of areas. At the end of the day (to use that well worn cliche)
Arsene is responsible for the players that he deems 'fit to wear the shirt'